Boat hull



Feb. 15, 1949.

M. HALL BOAT HULL Filed Sept. 14, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet l Feb. 15,1949. M A HA| 2,461,819

BOAT HULL Filed Sept. 14, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb. 15, 1949 BOAT HULL Marcus A. Hall, Bethany, 001111., assignor, by,

e ne ass g en to Ghurchward 84,09 pany, Incorporated, West Haven, Conn a corporaticn of Connecticut Application September 14, 1944, Serial No. 554,025

7 Claims.

lhis invention relates to boat hulls, and more particularly to boat hulls constructed of metal such'as steel, and of the general type described in my companion application, Serial No. 554,024, filed September 14:, 194%. In that application there is described an improved metal hull in which the hull consists essentially of longitudinal members of a rail-like character, including a keel member, chine members, and upper sheer merribers, and steel plates extending longitudinally oi} the hull and applied to those members exteriorly by continuous welds.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a hu'l of this general character embodying an improved structure at the upper or he r e n- Another object is to provide an improved fender rail structure.

To these and other ends the invention consists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and finally pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a boat hull embodying my improvements;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same;

Figs. 3., 4,-5 and 6 are respectively sections on lines ii- 5, 5-5 and 5-6 of Fig. 1; i

Fig. 34* is an enlargement of a portion of Fig. 3;

Fig. 7- is an enlarged detail sectionthrough one ofthe sheer and fender rails in the bow portion of the hull; and

Figs. 8, 9 and 10 are detail sections showing a modified structure.

In the example selected for illustration in the drawings, the hull is one suitable for a speed boat having a length of between and feet, and is constructed in the manner'described 'in my application, Serial No. 554,024.. In this construction the hull comprises a keel member [5, chine members it, and upper rail members ll at the sheer portion. Between the keel member [5 and each chine member It is a longitudinal plate [8, and between each chine member 16 and sheer member ll is a longitudinal plate I9, the hull being provided with a deck 20 interconnecting the longitudinal members HQ As described in that application, the bottom plates are applied externally by welds to the keel member and the chine members, and the side plates are applied externally by welds to the chine members and the sheer members, the arrangement being such as to leave portionsof the several rail-like members exppsed, the shape of the hull merging from a wide high bow cross section to a shallow, narrow er, and more flat-bottomed section adjacent the stern, the side plates being laid at avariet'ybf angles to the vertical to the sheer members and matter of the present application is directed especially to the structure at the sheer portion of the hull.

In the drawings, Fig. 3, shows the cross section of, the upper part of the hull adjacent the stem, thev stem portion being of substantially triangular cross section. Fig. 4 shows" the upper part of the hull at the, wide portion of the bow, where the hull is covered by the deck, and where the width is near the maximum. In the section of Fig. 5, the side walls are shorter and have less angle to the vertical. In the cross'se-ction of Fig. 6 the side Walls are further shortened, and the angles of the side walls to the vertical are reverse angles as compared to Fig. 5.

The rail-like members ll serve to interconnect the' deck plate 20 with the side plates I9, and are of the nature of sheer and fender members. These members-are substantially flush with the side plates in the stem portion of the hull, as will be seen from Fig. 3, but between the planes indicated by the section lines 33 and 4-4, these members, as they progress rearwardly, project more and more in a lateral direction from the hull until, somewhat-in advance of the line 44, they reach the fully projecting position (Fig. 4) in which these members are positioned to act as fender members in fending on the boat from a pier or the like. From the region shown in Fig. 4, these fender members have substantially the same projecting relation substantially to the stern of the craft.

l3y preference the rail member I7 is constructed of sheet metal, and is of substantially U-shaped cross section, with the side members I of the U directed inwardly with respect to the hull and disposed approximately horizontally so that the median plane of the member is approximately horizontal. This provides a cross-sew tional shape of the rail member which is well lapped over the upper wall 22 of the member l1 and Welded thereto by an edge weld 23 at the edge of plate 20.

In attaching the side plate is to the rail-like member, a flange 24, formed integrally with the lower wall "25 of the U, may be utilized to advantage, said flange providing a down-turned lip on the rail wmcn pre'ieraply is somewhat 1ncnned, as shown, so as to extend downwardly and inwardly with reference to the hull. construction shown in Figs. 1 to '7, inclusive, this lip is not utilized 1n iormmg the connection between tne side plate and the sheer rail at the stem portion, for at the stem portion, where there is no lateral projection of the rail, it is expedient to weld the side plate directly to the body of the U, as shown more particularly at 24 in Fig. 3 However, as the cross section of Fig. 4 is reached, the side plate comes up against the lip 24 at the side and is welded thereto, as shown in Figs. 4 and 7. It is understood that the upper edge of plate I9 is somewhat biased with respect to the axis or longitudinal line of the rail and comes gradually into contact with the lip. The weld is indicated at 24* From the position shown in Figs. 4 and 7, the lip is progressively bent outwardly at the lower part so as to accommodate the lip to the welding thereto of the side plate with its changing angle. In the section of Fig. 5 the lip is bent outwardly to a greater extent than in the position of Fig. 4, and in the section of Fig. 6 is has been bent past the vertical plane so as to be in parallelism with the side plate which, in this part of the hull, is at a slight reverse angle with respect to the section of Fig. 5.

As shown, the median plane of the sheer rail is approximately horizontal throughout the length of the hull, its angle to the vertical being approximately constant, but if desired variation may be made in this respect.

It will be noted that the rails I! act as combined sheer and fender members. They are sheer members because they aid in determining the sheer oi the side plates, holding the latter in the desired sheer angles. They are fender members because they project laterally beyond the lines of the hull body, as has been described above. The rail members are of such cross section as to have great strength in themselves. The side plates are attached to these rail members, with the plates at continuously varying angles to the vertical lengthwise of the hull. Between the sheer rail and the adjacent chine member the hull plate is under twist about a longitudinal axis. Owing to the fact that the plate is located at a multiplicity of diiierent angles to the vertical lengthwise of the plate, the plate as welded to the sheer member has a twist therein about a longitudinal axis. As a result, the hull is given a surprising amount of strength. In this method of construction there is obvious cooperation of the forked or bifurcated sheer members and the plate members in giving the hull strength and rigidity with the use of a minimum amount of metal, whereby the lightness of the hull is increased greatly in comparison to prior metal hull structures.

In the modified construction shown in Figs. 8, 9. and 10, the sheer rail II has a lip 24' depending from its lower wall, the angle of this lip with respect to the median plane of the sheer rail being substantially constant throughout the length of the hull. In this case the side plate It in the wide portion of the bow is attached to the lip as before, the plate'having fiatwise 1n the engagement with the lip and being welded there-- in the structure without departing fromthe' principles of the invention or the scope of the claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a boat hull, a rail-like sheer member which is substantially U-shaped in cross section, with the intermediate part of the U disposed exteriorly of the hull and its flanges extending inwardly, a deck plate applied exteriorly to the upper part of the U, and a side plate welded exteriorly to the lower part of the U, the lower flange of the u having a depending lip, a part of said side plate being welded to said lip so that in that region of the sheer member the latter has a laterally projecting position, another part of the side plate being welded directly to the body of the sheer member so that the side plate is substantially flush with the sheer member.

2. In a boat hull, a sheer member in the form of a rail having the cross section of a U laid on its side with its intermediate portion outermost, in combination with a hull side plate having its edge engaging the lower part of the U on the bias and welded thereto, the sheer member being substantially flush adjacent the stem of the hull but having a laterally projecting location rearwardly of the stem.

3. In a boat hull, a sheer member having inwardly extending furcations, a deck plateexteriorly applied flatwise and welded to one of the furcations, and a side plate exteriorly applied and welded to the other furcation, said side plate being positioned in a progressively higher location with respect to the sheer member toward the stem so as to have the sheer member in a projecting position rearwardly of the stem and flush at the stem.

4. A boat hull having a relatively thin metal structure in the sheer portion of the hull presenting a deck plate, a side plate and a bowedout portion joining the two, the side plate being formed separately from the remainder of the structure and being lapped over and welded to the bowed-out portion at progressively higher locations on said portion in the direction of the stem so that said portion is substantially flush at the stem and in a projecting position rearwardly of the stem to act as a fender.

5. A boat hull comprising a sheer member of substantially U-shaped cross section having an inwardly disposed lower flange provided with an integral terminal lip, said lip being disposed at substantially the same angle to a longitudinal vertical plane throughout a considerable portion of the length of the hull, and a side plate having an upper edge engaged externally with said lip and welded to the sheer member, said side plate having its upper edge portion disposed at difierent angles with respect to the lip.

6. A boat hull having a sheet metal deck and sheer structure presenting the cross section of a U-laid on its side with its curved intermediate portion outermost, in combination with a hull side plate-having its edge engaging the lower 'part of the U on the bias and welded thereto,

3 and welded to the lower side of the U shape on =the bias, the curved base portion of the U shape belngsubstantially flush with the upper edge of the side plate adjacent the hull stem and gradually extending outwardly and laterally from said edge rearwardly of the stem through a portion of the hull length to act as a fender,

6 said base portion having a projecting fender position throughout substantially the remainder of the hull length. MARCUS A. HALL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Country Date 1,636,076 Ruthenburg A July 19, 1927 1,674,665 Ruthenburg B -1 June 26, 1928 I 1,810,097 Wheeler June 16, 1931 1,885,198 Hale Nov. 1, 1932 2,162,822 Parsons June 20,- 1939 

